Discover Brantford Blog

Chalk it all up to some fun games

Sidewalk chalk has always been a go-to outdoor activity for families with children. It’s a fun and inexpensive way to play outside. And with the current public outdoor activities and recreation restrictions, chalk art and games can be seen popping up all over neighbourhoods. There are so many great ways to get outdoors, get creative and get active. Here are some fun driveway games and chalk options:

The Floor is Lava! – if you have a young one at home, you have definitely heard this phrase followed by little feet doing whatever it takes to not touch the ground. Draw “islands” on the driveway surrounded by “lava” flames. Kids (and kids at heart) have to jump from island to island to stay off the lava floor. This game is fire!

Hopscotch – this is the king of all sidewalk chalk games. It’s a fun way to count, balance and jump off some energy.

Walk the Line – Draw a simple chalk line all over the driveway that twists and turns. Players “walk the line” and follow the path. Balance and patience wins the day!

Snakes and Ladders – this classic board game becomes an epic challenge on your driveway. Draw a squared and numbered grid and add the “snakes” and “ladders” throughout the board. Then either grab a pair of dice (or make your own giant pair of lawn dice!) and players jump onto the board and become the game pieces. This is a fun way to learn physical space and number counting.

Shape Maze – this one brings out your child’s ability to plan and prepare. Draw a grid of many different shapes (squares, circles, triangles, stars) with similar shapes located beside each other. Players need to find the right shape path to escape the grid.

Follow Me – this is an epic obstacle course. Players have to navigate the course by completing fun challenges before moving on to the next space. These challenges can include: jump up and down, clap 3 times, say the alphabet, walk backwards, frog jump, hop side to side, smile, pat your head/rub your belly, roar, stomp, touch your toes, spin around, meow like a cat…the possibilities and challenges are endless!

Spray the Shape – what little kid doesn’t like to spray water from a spray bottle! Challenge your little to find shapes on a pre-drawn grid of many shapes and spray them down. Hopefully the water goes on the shapes and not their siblings!

Dots and Lines – draw a grid of dots. Players then take turns drawing a single line across or down between two un-joined adjacent dots. The player who closes in a box earns that box and marks it with their initial. Whoever has the most finished boxes wins the game.

With better weather just around the corner, these are some fun activities to keep the young (and young at heart) people in your home engaged and active. Staying close to home can still mean having fun and staying active. Looking forward to seeing all the great chalk activities in the neighbourhoods of Brantford!

#BrantfordTogether

To slow the spread of COVID-19 in our community, the City of Brantford has closed all City facilities and prohibited use of all outdoor amenities including playground structures, benches, picnic tables, public exercise equipment, etc. While people who are not providing frontline essential services are urged to stay home, we recognize that people will occasionally need outdoor exercise breaks. The City’s parks and trails remain open for walking, jogging and biking (on applicable trails), however, strict physical distancing guidelines (remaining 6 ft apart from others) MUST be practiced at all times in public.